paste for 12
flowers
the Alcindor rules
In 1967, I was a gangly 6’5” 15 year old riding the pine for Mike Blough’s JV Bulldogs. That same year, the NCAA announced it would be illegal to toss the basketball in through the imaginary cylinder extending up from the rim. In the organization’s words, the dunk “was not a skillful shot,” and the rules committee said the ban was also a result of injury concerns. In the report accompanying their announcement, they cited 1,500 events where a player was hurt around the backboard during the previous year. Of course, it had nothing to do with that magnificent 7’1 5/8” black guy from Harlem who’d come to play for John Wooden at UCLA and proceeded to dunk over everyone his first year. Coach Wooden assured Lew Alcindor that the dunk ban would only make him a better basketball player. It did. He developed his famous sky hook – useful even for little guys like Michigan’s Xavier Simpson to get the ball up over some big guy – and led his team to national championships in ’68 and ’69 before going on to a 20 year hall-of-fame career in the NBA, where from ’71 on he competed as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. See him here as UCLA’s star. Did you know he almost came to Michigan?
33 was my number on JVs.
But the anti-dunk rule would forever be known as the Alcindor rule. It lasted 10 years. Fans were deprived of one of the most exciting plays in basketball, even if purists say it is not a skillful move. Players were deprived, too, of a play that connotes such dominance over an opponent.
Why do I care? Sure, as a fan I missed seeing dunks. But as a player, it was much, much worse. It wasn’t just during games that you couldn’t put the ball through the cylinder, but practice and pre-games as well. I kept growing – 6’6” as a junior, 6’8”as senior -and got my way onto Tom Horn’s varsity team. Coach Horn had hopes that someday the light would go on for me. It never did, but midway through my junior season, I put some stick-um on my fingers, took a run at the basket, and slam! Wow, did I just do that? So I did that a few times every practice, just for fun, and all was well until Coach Horn saw me doing it. “You know that’s illegal and you could get the team in trouble if you’re caught doing it in a game or the warm-ups”. The “trouble” was a technical foul. Grumbling, I’d still take a shot at it now and then in practice. I never dunked in pre-game warmups until my senior year. Some of my teammates realized we had a show on our hands. Dan Cohrs, 6’6” starting center, Dan Walters, 6’2” starting forward, and I could all dunk. We decided we’d line up for layup drills with the two Dans then me coming down the lane to the hoop. It was an outstanding show, and the crowd always went crazy. Coach Horn couldn’t help but see it and got ever more pissed the more we did it, even if we never drew that technical foul. He couldn’t bench the Dans because they were too good and I was already on the bench. I think our show did kinda fade away, but it remains one of my best memories of high school basketball. I grew another inch and played intramurals at Michigan and Chicago, maybe a bit more skillfully, but I don’t think I ever dunked again. I saw my Bulldogs play last Friday night and one of those tall skinny white farm kids dunked in warmups. Good for him. His coach didn’t have to go ape as it’s all been legal since ’77, thank God.
Maybe my memories of the dunk show wouldn’t be so special if it hadn’t been illegal. But isn’t it that way with a lot of things? Still, whatever the barriers, ya gotta reach high.
So here’s the VHS ’68-9 team. I was a junior. The senior year team picture has us in our blazers, not as cool. To my right is my classmate Eric Durham, my best friend. He hadn’t mastered the dunk and chose not to go out his senior year. Next to Dan Cohrs on my left is senior Sam Rogers. He used his ample size for brutishness rather than finesse and couldn’t dunk. He became a very close friend much later and died 2 Januaries ago.
WaPo
Is that horse dead yet? (1)
Reference
- Flam F. Mask mandates didn’t make much difference, anyway. Washington Post February 11, 2022. https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/mask-mandates-didnt-make-much-of-a-difference-anyway/2022/02/11/57760db6-8b3b-11ec-838f-0cfdf69cce3c_story.html
P.S. My sweetheart sent this pic to remind me there are indeed effective anti-viral masks
Blue LLama!
Ann Arbor has had a couple of great jazz clubs over the past 30-40 years. Ron Brooks’ Bird of Paradise on Main Street gave a venue for many local jazz artists to perform, giving birth to the Bird of Paradise Orchestra – basically Paul Keller’s big band – which has lived on as the Paul Keller Orchestra. A feisty young waitress there – Susan Chastain -showed Ron she could sing, and eventually was performing regularly. She mustered enough gumption to start up her own club over on Ashley -the Firefly Club – and took what she knew from Ron to make an even better place. Susan started up in 2000, and Ron would go under in 2004 under the weight of tax problems. Susan ran a lively place anchored by such features as the late Paul Klinger’s Easy Street Jazz Band’s Friday happy hour (where we were regulars) and a main Saturday show featuring both local stalwarts and traveling acts, but with music 7 days a week. Chris Smith’s/James Dapogny’s P.O.R.K was a Sunday staple, featuring 20s-40s small group favorites. Her walls were rapidly plastered with all the acts coming through. She ran a small but tasty kitchen for any hungry patrons and featured adventurous beers on tap. She was booted out of her cool Ashley digs in 2007 and found space in the old Ark down the street. While offering more space to performers, it never captured the cool sophistication of Ashley. My wife and I became so involved with the club we took a small financial stake, forever cementing in our friends’ minds the notion of “our jazz club”. The Firefly finally closed in August 2009, again from tax problems (did Susan learn this from Ron?). This left Ann Arbor without a jazz club for the first time in 25 years. Performances at the Zaz Del Grotto, a Masonic Social Club, and the Kerrytown Concert House, sustained some local jazz acts, but not in the manner those two thriving jazz clubs had done. Steps in Don Hicks, who in 2019 enlisted restauranteur Louis Goral to open Blue LLama on South Main, right next door to the Ark. Ellis Marsalis was supposed to kick off the opening, but was not able to travel for four weeks and was replaced by organist Joey DeFrancesco and his quartet. Hicks is an accomplished trumpeter, with Michigan origins in the Interlochen Jazz Band, and he occasionally performs at his own club.
So it was in the setting of all this history I decided to see what was up at Blue LLama coming up. Kathy and I had never been there, although our neighbor Justin – a trumpeter -had performed there on occasion. What should be forthcoming but a dinner/show package for Valentine’s day. Featured was an up-and-coming ( age 27) chanteause – Veronica Swift – plus a prix fixe menu package. Pretty romantic, so why not? Our YouTube auditions of Ms Swift were a little discouraging, as they sounded pretty “noodly”. But we went anyway. Arriving, the BL was a pretty impressive space as we took our place against the wall with a great view of the stage.
The waitress described the prix fixe menu to us, as well as the optional wine pairings (which we snapped up). Here’s what we had to look forward to eat.
The food was so good we wondered to each other if maybe we’d be satisfied if Ms Swift never showed up and all we’d had was our snacks.
As it turned out, Ms Swift did show up, accompanied by her 5 piece band: drums, piano, bass, soprano sax, and baritone sax, the latter wielded by a skinny blonde woman not much bigger than her instrument. Later in the set, Ms Swift brought in a guitarist friend.
She began with heart-wrenching vocal jazz and descended into rock-and-roll. At no point were her noodly tendencies evident, much to Kathy’s relief.
My heart was wrenched by her rendition of Mel Torme’s “A Stranger in Town”, about returning to one’s old home town. Who’s been doing that lately? Her version didn’t make YouTube, so how about Mel Torme’s? (1)
She did a lively rendition of “How lovely to be a woman”, from Bye Bye Birdie! (2). How gender affirming!
She moved to full rock to close with Blood Sweat and Tears’ “You made me so very happy”, perfect for Valentine’s day. She said she’d performed it with them recently. Song always needed a girl singer. (3)
Sorry none of these signature tunes were available by her on her extensive YouTube list. She’ll fill them out, I’m sure.
Here’s a classic by her, perfect for closing out an evening, on which she does a very nice job: (4)
So check out Veronica Swift if she comes your way, and if you’re in AA, check out the Blue LLama. And let me know. I’d love to come along.
References
1. Torme M. A stranger in town. YouTube. Posted July 31, 2018. Recorded October 5, 1944. Released 1945. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37m4UE6vMNQ
2. Margaret A. How lovely to be a woman. YouTube. Posted February 2, 2008. Released 1963. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O1ilu-ARtiY
3. Blood Sweat & Tears. You’ve Made Me So Very Happy. YouTube. Posted May 20, 2007. Performed July 11, 1993. Recorded October 16, 1968. Released March 1969.
4. Swift V. Something cool. YouTube. Posted August 17, 2020. Released 1954.. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrJbk0yUy-o
hell no
When Kathy and I joined the U of M Club of Ann Arbor a few years ago, we lowered the average age by a few points. The main attraction of joining is entrance to the Coaches’ Luncheons, which feature a fine hot lunch from Weber’s shared by like-minded rabid Wolverine fans, all gathered to hear talks from 2 coaches. Sure, the stars show up, and we’ve seen both Jimmy (1) and Juwan. But filling up the rest of the slots are the sometimes even more interesting assistants (we heard from nearly every one of Jimmy’s young talented staff last fall) as well as coaches of the “non-revenue sports”, such as today’s diminutive but dynamic Kim Barnes Arico, whose lady roundballers are off to their best season ever. They’re a lock for the NCAAs, where they reached the sweet sixteen last year, in contention for the Big Ten title, and feature a WNBA first-rounder in the post.
The Luncheons were victim of COVID 2020-21, and it was good to see them resume this year. The local Omicron surge sunk most of January’s meetings, and they’ve resumed with a heighten dose of COVID paranoia. While the U of M Club is not under the arm of the athletic department, those who run the show in the club have adopted the athletic director’s restrictions, instituted for University sporting events January 1st: vaxx passports produced on entry or at least proof of 72 hours or less of a negative COVID test, plus masks for inside affairs. While COVID tests are free and readily available all over campus (except on weekends), sometimes the timing doesn’t work. Kathy and I were in Kalamazoo during the 72 hour lead-up to this Monday, so we found a lab in Portage willing to stick a Q-tip up our noses, for a fee, of course.
At Weber’s, as with all Michigan eating establishments, masks can be removed for eating or drinking. Funny how that passage of materials into the piehole totally blocks entrance or exit of coronavirus. So today, after finishing my salmon lunch, I turned my chair around to face the first speaker, and let’s say Mr. Smith could see my facial expressions. After not too long, a woman came along. I think she was a club member not restaurant staff. In a scolding voice, she told me to put on a mask! I turned my head to her and just said “No!”. Kathy was worried we’d get thrown out of the room, but I grabbed my magic talisman – my water glass – holding it in my hand and keeping it filled for the next hour, and that was the last we saw of our COVID harpie.
The event inspired me to come home and gin up a little something that I could hand to people such as our harpie in order to explain my point of view. Here’s what I came with. Note it is only 2″ X 3.5″in real life. Thank God for computers, home printers, and card stock. I’ve railed against masks since the early days of this blog. I’ll spare you all the links except for the latest (2).
If you’re looking for a reference to bolster your “why bother” mask, good luck. What’s out there are articles that masks as part of the rest of the “mitigating measures”, like hand washing and distancing, may reduce risk. But masks just stop respiratory droplets, letting teeny Mr. Corona pass right through. Even St. Anthony privately e-mailed that they don’t do much (3). Worse comes to worse, you can buy a mask that looks like a mask but allows free passage of air and won’t fog your glasses (4). Handy for airplanes. Or you can buy a mask that makes a statement. I bought a mask a couple weeks ago with this image on it:
Bought it on Etsy. Can’t find it today.
But the best statement is not to wear one of the damned things. Fight the power!
References
1. Ike B. lunch with Jimmy. WordPress August 20, 2021. https://theviewfromharbal.com/2021/08/20/lunch-with-jimmy/
2. Ike B. Off with the masks! WordPress January 4, 2022. https://theviewfromharbal.com/2022/01/04/off-with-the-masks/
3. Richard L. Fauci said masks were not ‘really effective’ at blocking virus, emails reveal. Washington Examiner June 2,2021. https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/leaked-email-fauci-obama-official-not-wear-mask-virus-pass-through-material
4. The UnMask. breathe with us. https://www.getunmask.com/
‘burg report
I went to basketball homecoming Friday night so you didn’t have to. Let me say, the ‘burg has changed, but maybe only a little. The game was an excuse for one of those AA-KZO Amtrak trips Kathy and I like so much, staying at an AirBnB right downtown overlooking Bronson Park and the lights of the city. You can read about our restaurant forays on my blog (1)). My classmate and Tom Horn teammate Dan Walters agreed to join us, and I was hoping for some sort of alumni tribute. About all I got for being an old fart was free admission. I’d received from the AD Mike Roy a pass for my phone, but couldn’t find it as I was entering. The kid at the desk taking tickets let me in anyway, but still charged my youthful bride 7 bucks. The court is impressive, with its red and white bench seats. An aggressive portrait of charging bulldogs emblazons the west wall.
No stage anymore, that’s relegated to a space near the old Market Place. The game was entertaining as anything a group of skinny white farm kids might muster. The Bulldogs have sucked this year, but put up a good fight against the Edwardsburg Eddies, finally losing by 2 points. Halftime featured homecoming ceremonies, with attractive young couples parading towards Dave Maneikis at the center of the scorers’ table, although he said afterwards he wasn’t the guy passing judgement. King and queen were one of the basketball players (a Smith, I believe) and an exchange student. As the girls were parading across, Dan and I wondered which one’s skirts would have passed the Johnny Mac test. It was like the old Jackie Wilson song “Higher and higher” (2) . There was one fat girl in the bunch, nice face, but not a winner. The boys, of course, looked totally befuddled by their roles. We sat in the section next to the pep band, who were in fine form, except they played the fight song after every quarter, even when we were losing. No cheerleaders in sight. I guess the girls are devoting all their energies to “cheer team” these days, a certified, letter granting, athletic endeavor.
Mike Roy, the AD, had announced to me by email before he’d be by the scoreboard on the west wall. He wasn’t quite the “All-American bullet-headed Saxon mother’s son”, but it was clear he knew football from the inside (he was a scholarship player on the line at UNLV after playing at Paw Paw, when they still were still the Redskins), and was very personable. He’s well respected in his field (3). After I shook his hand and complimented him on the facilities, he brought over his 7th and 4th grade kids, each getting a good education in the Vicksburg Community Schools. Then it was time to walk over and talk to Pitts. He was in the middle of the scorer’s bench, wearing ref’s stripes. I asked him if he’d need to step in if one of the on-court guys suffered a Bartlett, and he assured me his seat was his home. He’d spotted me and Dan across the way early in the game and waved. I’ve learned before that Dave doesn’t like his sobriquet of “Carl Pitts” despite his enthusiastic emblazonment of it back in the day. So it was “Dave” all the way, and he was having a good day. A couple of his careful recordings of on-court events had overturned calls. He waxed how his name was on the walls of this gym (it was) for his contributions to Vicksburg athletics, mainly as the football announcer at Canavan Field for many years. He also recalled how he had caught 2 no hitters his senior year, including one by Bob Cross, who had never pitched before. I’d recalled him only as a pretty good offensive tackle, and at our 50th (plus one) reunion in July, told him he was our class’s Jim Brandstatter. I think since I pointed out that both he and Jim had had weight struggles, he wasn’t too enamored of the comparison at the time. But Dave’s a good sweet guy, a successful electrician, and an example of how a fat kid can make it, even if his knees can’t.
After, there was too much energy built up to truck all the way back to Kalamazoo. Distant Whistle beckoned, where Dane Bosel and Andy Clouse brew what may be the best beer in Kalamazoo County (4).
Despite the energy, we were fading and facing a 15 mile drive back to the city. As we sipped our beer each, some gray hair with a guitar played boomer music. The place was full, but no young ‘uns. It was still wonderful. We got our names on the wait list for the mug club. I think every drinking adult in the ‘burg has a mug hanging on their walls.
So this wasn’t the home I left in ’70, but it’s still a pretty good place to come back to. I expect to do so repeatedly.
References
1. Ike B. one meatball. WordPress. Posted February 11,2022. https://theviewfromharbal.com/2022/02/11/one-meatball/
2. Wilson J. Your love keeps lifting me higher and higher. YouTube. Posted August 11, 2011. Released August 1967. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mzDVaKRApcg
3. Oswalt-Forsythe K. Athletic director Michael Roy receives award. South County News. January 2022. https://southcountynews.org/2022/01/15/athletic-director-michael-roy-receives-award/
4 Haroldon T. Vicksburg’s first microbrewery opens today. MLive.com. September 10, 2016. https://www.mlive.com/news/kalamazoo/2016/09/vicksburgs_first_microbrewery.html
one meatball
Did you ever pick a restaurant for its fireplace(s)? That’s how we ended up at Martell’s in Kalamazoo last night (1), where I’ve dragged Kathy for basketball homecoming at Vicksburg tonight. This month’s Encore conveniently just arrived and featured an article on the 5 best fireplaces in the Kalamazoo area (2). Readers of this blog know how much Kathy and I love a good fireplace (3), so Mr. Cunningham was a big help for us picking our dinner spots. Tonight, we’ll dine at the Cove Lakeside Bistro (4) in Portage, on West Lake, right on the way to Vicksburg, just 7.2 miles to the high school. The big fireplace at the Cove backs up a view of the sunset over West Lake. Unfortunately, the patio is closed for the season.
Even though Martell’s seems to be a local institution, I didn’t recall it from my high school and college days living in Kalamazoo County in the 60s and early 70s. Then, thanks to Dr. Google, I learned it used to be called the Black Swan, which I certainly do recall as one of the places to eat (5). Not only did they have great food, but the location and atmosphere were outstanding. Still are. It sits right in the middle of Kalamazoo’s toniest neighborhood – Parkview – which grew up after WWII around Parkwyn Village, a neighborhood built around the four lakeside homes that a group of Upjohn scientists commissioned Frank Lloyd Wright to design (6). Although Wright designed only 4 of the 40 homes, he did design the whole community. The Village celebrates its 75th anniversary this year. You can see the neighborhood here (7).
But back to food. One of Martell’s/Black Swan’s legendary dishes is their meatballs, served as an appetizer. Mildly and subtly spiced, barely holding together, they were superb. The Ciacci Piccolomini d’Aragona Rosso di Montalcino 2019 washed them down like it was made for the task. Their Brasato followed (Italian style boneless short rib in a red wine reduction sauce) which stood up even better to that wine than the meatballs did.
So it got me thinking a little more about meatballs. They have kind of a mundane reputation. “Spaghetti and meatballs” is so simple, especially out of a Chef Boyardee can. But they’re kind of fussy to make, and not real easy to get right, like the chef at Martell’s clearly did. Just the right amount of bread crumbs, egg, meat, and cheese. You don’t want ‘em so hard you have to use a steak knife to cut ‘em in two. “Fork tender” is the standard. Not too big. Not too small. But oh the potential. Different meats and combinations, different spices, different alliums. And you don’t necessarily have to whip up a plate of spaghetti for them to rest on. I’ve taken a few stabs at making them over the last several years, and include the recipes below. You’re on your own for the wine pairings but red is a good place to start. Make sure you make enough, so you don’t end up singing the blues like little Josh White, Jr. (8)
Here are the recipes
This one’s the first I tried, using meats from little ungulates who never grew up:
Next, these are some spicy, spicy meatballs. Must be the harissa. Oh, and the paprika. A great appetizer with the green goddess dip:
And you don’t have to drive some place and look at cheap furniture to enjoy these:
Finally, here, the referenced Grandma is Jessica Gavin’s, not my much missed long departed Dutch and German ladies. I’m sure they made meatballs too, but I haven’t dug into their old recipe boxes or cookbooks to find out how. This one I found today looking for something like the Martell’s chef made. I think it’s close. Can’t wait to try it when I get home.
Buon appetito
References
1. Martell’s. https://www.martellsparkviewhills.com/
2. Cunningham D. Five Faves. The area’s coziest fireplaces to cuddle by. Encore February 2022. pp 7-9. https://issuu.com/issuuencore/docs/encore_feb2022_final_links
3. Ike B. burn on. WordPress December 14, 2021. https://theviewfromharbal.com/2021/12/14/burn-on/
4. Cove Lakeside Bistro. https://www.covewestlake.com/
5. Bugnaski M. Martell’s, formerly known as the Black Swan, will offer casual dining with a strong Italian accent. Kalamzoo Gazette. September 8, 2009. https://www.mlive.com/living/kalamazoo/2009/09/martells_formerly_known_as_the.html
6. Parkwyn Village. https://www.parkwynvillage.com/
7. A unique community with the “Wright touch”. Eight West. August 3, 2018, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZjqctyGqQyo
8. White J. One meatball. YouTube. Posted July 13, 2016. Recorded 1944. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tHRhPcVarbE
stuff ’em, Danno
Tonight’s going to be lamb stuffed peppers. Meijer’s had a nice sale on those colorful out-of-season Mexican imports so I said what the hell. Kathy swoons whenever I say stuffed peppers will be on the menu, but I sometimes forget how good they can be. I haven’t come up with a new way to stuff Capsicum annuum for a while, but from the frenzied times when I first discovered this dish, I’ve accumulated quite a few recipes, which I share with you below. When my high school English teacher Mrs. Pharriss told me her man John enjoyed stuffed peppers, I had an envelope full of 3X5 cards off to her pronto. When I “discovered” a few more off they were to Palo Alto. She had to tell me to stop, but I think John enjoyed the peppers.
Our dish for tonight actually has much more exotic name – “Kooshi mahshi”, which my Google translate takes from Arabic as “stuffed hay”. I’ll assure the dish is tastier than that. We are blessed to live a couple blocks from a Syrian bakery, which provides us with their so tasty, exotic foods at a whim. This one is up to their standards. We must thank our friends the farmers. We thank our good friends, former colleague research superstar Michelle and husband farmer Mark for letting us bring home one of their ungulates every year and slowly reduce it from our freezer. Mark and Michelle are just the coolest modern farm couple, so you’ve got to see them
Tonight’s dish is lamb based and very tasty, See below. Wouldn’t you want to tie into that?. The Syrians, being Muslims, would eschew alcohol, but then, this dish goes well with a nice Syrah. Perhaps that’s a cultural appropriation. I’d await for the DEI office to come down on me’, but so far they’ve left the emeriti alone.
Here is what tonight dish looked like
and here’s the recipe
so, there are many more to try
Here’s an early on I just wanted to use some of my pork
beef and gorgonzola is a good taste treat, so let’s mix it up!
It’s always worth he fuss for Italian. Note this one gives you 2 sides to your 3X5 card, Well worth the fuss.
Who doesn’t love meatloaf? Let’s stuff that into peppers.
Pork again, with more fuss. Still muy tasty.
Should your hunter friends bring you some wild meat, heres something you can do with it.
here’s one based on the Mexican corn snack
So that’s it for now. I was just flipping through my recipe binders and saw “jambalaya stuffed peppers”. Gotta try that one next.
| ¼ |
explodey!
When I hinted to my wife I was thinking of publishing a 5th volume of Musings devoted to food, she asked “is explodey soup in there?”. A legendary entry in our family’s food lore, I never had occasion to blog about it. I explained it to my English teacher Mrs. Pharriss, but not every exchange with her turned into a post. Since I’m on a soup kick, I thought what the hell.
Here’s what happened. On a Thanksgiving many years ago, all the Clarks were over. I thought they deserved a soup course to lead up to their turkey. I’d come across a recipe for “Golden Harvest Soup”, basically a squash soup – perfect for the season – with just a little fuss getting the squash from solid to liquid. As with all family Thanksgivings, I was holed up in the kitchen cooking. Kathy said I was so dedicated so I could avoid her family. Maybe a little, but I like them better now. The baked squash were ready for their transformation, so I began to stuff pieces bit by bit into the Waring blender. The blender was a little balky on the transformation so I decided to help it along. What harm can a little plastic spatula cause? With the blender running, I stuck that spatula in, and it caught a piece, yielding “explodey” Golden Harvest all over my face, chest, and kitchen ceiling. The assembled Clarks had a good laugh at their soiled chef and the story, but later enjoyed each their thimbleful of remaining soup, pronouncing it very tasty. I’ve made this soup many times since -it’s a great soup – using a Cuisinart. But to this day it remains “explodey soup”, asked for explicitly.
As John Gorka sang, “That’s how legends are made” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7-qMLwhsSg8. But maybe it doesn’t always begin with heroism and excellence.
Only a few will get the reference to ”explodey”. Sure, I stood there with squash all “explodied” over my face, but there’s more to it. Kathy and I were big fans in the early 90s of “Ren & Stimpy”, a sick and hilarious cartoon series compiled by the deranged Canadian genius John Kricfalusi. The first year and a half were otherworldly, then management pulled the show away from him. But not before he created, among so many other characters, “explodey pup”. He only appeared once, in a 2 and a half minute cartoon within a cartoon. Ren Höek, the sleazy chihuahua, had created a cartoon to show to the mogul. Lots of stereotypes were exploited, including the exit of the hero at the end. “Explodey’s” name suggested he might have a problem, revealed only at the end when he finally accepted that kiss from his best gal, long suffering Poopie.
Here’s the conclusion
If you care to watch the whole 2:41 segment, here’s that https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZEszeuDxoQ
And here’s the recipe
Bob Ike's blog 